Fluid-controlled clutch.



PATENTED DEC 31, 1907.

J. G. LEYNER.

FLUID CONTROLLED GLUTGH.

m- I} Z5z veiaiorn' fi/m 1 MM APPLICATION FILED MAR. 26, 1907.

JOHN GEORGE LEYNER, OF DENVER, COLORADO.

FLUID-CONTROLIED GJLUTCBL Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed March 26 1907. Serial No. 364,659.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN GEORGE LEY NER, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at the city and county of Denver and State 'of Colorado, have invented a new and useful Fluid-Controlled Clutch, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a new speed accelerating starting clutch for gradually a plyin power to machinery for moving loa s; and t e objects of my invention are: First, to provide a fluid operating slow-speed starting and speed "accelerating fluid controlled clutch adapted to gradually start and progressively increase the speed of loadlift mg and load moving engines. Second, to provide a clutch adapted to connect constant speed electric motors to dead load starting and moving or lifting hoisting traction transmission machines. And third, to provide a fluid controlled clutch that is simple, practical, reliable, andthat is especially designed for use with constant speed electric motor operated hoisting engines for mining and other uses. I attain these objects by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

s Figure 1, is a. sectional elevation 'of'my improved fiuid controlled clutch. Fig. 2, is a front elevation of the clutch casing, the cap or cover being removed. Fig. 3, is a transpart 0 verse section on line 3-3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4, is ahorizontal, sectional view of-the clutch casing, on the line 44 of Fig. 2.

. Similar letters of'reference refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawings, the numeral 1, designates the clutch or driver shaft of a constant speed electric motor; and 2 designates the driven. shaft. The driver shaft 1 and the driven shaft 2, are rotatably j'ournaled in bearinigs 3 and 4 respectively, that form a the supporting frame of the machine towhlch the clutch is attached. These two shafts and their bearings are arranged in.

axialalinement but with their adjacent ends posltloned at a short distance apart. To the end of the driven shaft 2, I secure the clutch case 5, which consists of a circular disk-.

Andv

towards the axial center of the chamber.

These curved walls form gear hous' s and they are arranged concentric to j purna apertures 8 and 9, which '.are positioned. ata

predetermined distance from and on o posite sides of the axial center of the clutc case. In these journal apertures I rotatably mount one end of a pair of shafts 10 and "11, upon which are mounted and secured a pair .of gears 12 and 13, the teeth of'which intermesh and rotate closely together. The opposite end of the shaft 10 is journaled in a partition '14,. that fits against and is secured to the chambered end ofthe case, with a fluid-tight joint, and thus closes the chamber and in- Patented Dec'.- 31, 1907.

cases the gears, the gears being arranged to fit closely and to rotate freely between the partition and the' bottom of the chamber. The shaft 11 extends through and beyond this partition, and is j ournaled in an a erture 15, which'is provided with an anti- 'ction bushin 16.

To t e outside of the partition a cap or cover 17 is secured. This cover is provided with a hub portion that-is rotatably mounted on the driver shaft. This hub is preferably arra ed to extend into the journal bearing 3, of fiie driver shaft 1, thus acting as a part of the journal bearing-support for the driver shaft. The cover is rovided with a gear chamber which enters 1ts side adjacent to the partition, and the terminal end of the driver shaft 1 extends through this chamber and is rotatably journaled in a bearing formed in the part1tion.- The shaft 11 extends through the partition and through thechamber 1n keyed to theshaft 11 within t e chamber of the cover, and meshes with and is driven by the gear 19.

A port or passage 21 is formed in the bod of the casing, which port extends throu the body of the casing at right angles to t e am'al center of the casing and its shaft, and its opposite ends open into the chamber 7 at opposite sides of the gears; consequently it forms a continuous passage or port from one side of the chamber and of the gears to the opposite side of the chamber and the gears. In operating the clutch it is necessary to control this ort so that it can be either. wholl or partially opened or closed,

and while t e invention contemplates the use of any valve controlled port connecting the opposite sides of the chamber and the gears, preferably carry out this feature of my invention in the followin I position this port so that it will the plane of the axial center the case at manner 1 right angles to the driver and driven shafts of the clutch, and so that at one point it will pass through the body of the case at its axial center, and of the axial center of the driven.

shaft 2, and I place a valve at this point, preferably arranging1 it in the following manner: Through t e axial center of the driven shaft 2, I slidably extend a valve 'lar port 25, which-is formed in the axial cen:

ter of the bodyof the case, and: across the main port, thus intersecting it as. well as being ositioned partiall at oneside of it. The va ve stands normall g at one side of the main port. This valve is rovided with apertures 26, which extend t ough-it and are adapted to form passages for any fluid that. may flowpast the valve to its rear side. The outside end of the valve stem is provided with a hand lever 27, which is operativelysupported by abracket 28, adjacent. to its lower end, and below this point it is forked,

and the forked members are slotted to receive pins which project from a collar 29,

which is retained by nuts 30 and-a collar 31 to the valve stem. The chamber 7 inthe clutch casing is filled with suitable fluid,

' preferablyoil, througha plugged a 'erture 32,

. chamber and the gears through the port to nected and the oil is pumped and forced t oughthe.

chamber and the port by the teeth of the ears in a continuous stream from one side 0 the theop osite side of the gears and chamber. The hu l) of the casin is provided with either 'a pulley or a inionfiiut I- illustrate a pinion 33 which is s own in mesh with a fragment of a gear wheel 34.

The operatlon of fluid controlled adual speed accelerating clutch is as folows: Thedriver shaft 1 is operatively conan suitable constant speed mos tor, w eh I 0' not illustrate, but which it is assumed is running steadily'at its regular rate of speed, while the driven shaft 2 and the valve casing are also connected elther a pinion or a pulle to the load h ting or moving machine, 'w '01! I do not illustrate. The driver shaft with its gears and the body of oil'is kept running continuously by the ass through -machine comes to a sto driver shaft constant speed motor, while the casing .of the clutch and the load raising or moving machine is normally stationary, and when it is desired to start the load raising or lifting machine to raise or move its load, the valve stem is manually operated by the motorman or engineer through the medium of the lever 27 to close the port, whichinstantly stops the free continuous normal flow of the oil through the chamber, the "gears, and the port; the gears however continue to pump the oil from one side of the chamber into the port, and as it cannot ass through the port to the opposite side 0 the gears and'of the chamber, it is compressed, instantly in a continuous and progressive degree, until it exerts a back pressure on the gears that slows them down, and at the same time a rotary pushing movement on the clutch casing that in,a few seconds starts it slowly to rotating, which rotative movement very rapidly increases as the oil is com ressed by the umping effect of the teeth 0 the gears unt' the oil is so compressed that it offers a slightly elastic or yielding lock to the rotative movement of the gears, and consequently the driving power of the constant speed motion is transmitted through the driver shaft'and the ears within the clutch casing through the so 'd body of compressed oil to the casing and its pinion or drives the load lifting or moving machine. When the load has been raised or moved as desired, the engineer 0 us the valve and releases the compresse oil, which releases the gears and they start again rotating, while the casing of the clutch with the load raising or moving I The great pressure in the chamber an port causes the oil to leak past the valve slightly into its seat aperture, but the. apertures through the valve allow the oil to flow from behind the valve into the port the instant the valve is moved to open the port. The valve can be moved--toe1ther open or close the port as slowly as desired, so that the load may be started or stopped as slowly and gradually ,as the conditions re uire.

.The shaft 2, the ody of the casing, the partition, the cover, the gears, and the 1, all rotate'together 1n their supporting journal boxes 3 and 4, when the clutch is in full ower transmlttlng operation, being locked together by the compression of the oil when the valve is closed.

My speed. accelerating fluid controlled clutch is very simple and thoroughly prac-. tical. It is especially adapted for use w1th electric hoists where constant speed motors are used to drive the hoisting drums, and it is obvious that it can be'apglied to a great variet of work where dea quire to be started and moved at considerable speed and thenstopped again.

loads are re- 1 claim as new and desireto secure by Letters erated valve, a driver shaft rotatably mounted in said casing, means for driving-said shaft, and gearing connecting said driver shaft to said intermeshing gears of said casings chamber to rotate them.

2. In a fluid controlled load starting .clutch, the combination of the casing, a shaft secured to one end of said casing, suitable bearings for said shaft and for the opposite end of said casing, a chamber in said casing, a port in said casing connected to the opposite sides of its axial center, a valve disk seat in said port, a valve seated in said port seat to control said port, a valve stem connected to said valve and slidably mounted in the axial center of said shaft, a lever connected to said valve stem to operate said valve to close or open said port, intermeshing-gears in said chamber, ,a body of any suitable liquid in said chamber, and means independent of said casing, for driving said intermeshing gears.

' 3. In a fluid controlled starting clutch, the

combination of a casing comprising a body.

portion containing a chamber provided with a supply of oil, a pair of intermeshing gears rotatably mounted in said chamber, a partition secured to said chamber, a cover secured to said partition provided with a chamber, a pair of intermeshing rotatin gears in saidcovers chamber," a driver s aft connected to one of said covers gears, a shaft connecting the other cap covers gear with one of the gears of the chamber of said casing, a port extending through the body of said casing, and connected at its opposite ends with the opposite ends of said chamber in the body of said casin a valve arranged to control said port, an suitable bearings arranged to rotatably support said combined body portion and cover of said cas' 4. In a fluid controlled load starting clutch the combination of the body portion of the casing, provided with a gear housing chamber, the partition member secured to said body portion to cover said chamber, the cover member secured to said partition member, and also provided with a gear chamber, with the intermeshing gears rotatabl arranged to rotate in said chambers, a river shaft rotatably mounted in said cover and connected to one of its gears, and a shaft extending through both chambers and operatively connecting the gears of each chamber.

5. In a liquid controlled load starting clutch, the combination of the casin rotatably mounted in suitable bearings, t e port extending across the axial center of said this .ing at one end, the'oil and gear chamber arranged to connect to said port and ada ted to hold a supply of oil or other suitable uid, the valve seat at the axial center of said port,

the manually operating valve and valve stem arranged at the axial center of said casing to control said port, the intermeshing gears in said oil chamber, the driving shaft rotatably mounted in the opposite end of said casin and means connected to said driving sha t for rotating the gears in said oil chamber.

-6. In a clutch of the character described, a revoluble casing, a pair of 'inte'rmeshin gears in said casing, one of which is mounte on a shaft which projects beyond the casing,

walls partially surrounding said gears and formin chambers on each side of said casingadapte to be filled with a suitable liquid, a port being formed transversely through the wall of said casing, connecting said chambers; a hub on one end of the casing having aneaxial borewhich intersects said port;--a.

hollow shaft extending partially into said bore and supported in a bearing; a reciprocable valve in said bore, havin a stem which extends out through said sha t, and means for reciprocating said valve; a gear on the projecting shaft of one of the gears in said.

casing, 'a power-driven gear in mesh with. said last named gear, and a pinion on the hub of said casing.

= In testimony whereof I aflix my signaturein presence'of two witnesses.

JOHN GEORGE LEYNER. I

Witnesses. .G. SARGENT, ELLIOTT,

ADELLA M. FowLn. 

